Secrets of the Medjai Virtual Season Episode 7 - All in a Fog
by J-R Virtual Seasons
Summary: Back in London with his family, Alex finds himself facing an insubstantial but powerful enemy.
1. Chapter 1

Alex dumped his suitcase and his mongoose in his bedroom, then he ran downstairs and went into the main drawing room. His parents and his baby brother were waiting for him.

'Oh my God, there he is!' said Alex.

'Yes, here he is,' said Evy. 'Would you like to hold him, Alex?'

Alex nodded enthusiastically. Evy smiled, then she transferred her younger son into the arms of her older son. Alex stared at the baby for several seconds, then his expression completely melted.

'Isn't he fantastic?' said Alex. 'Oh my God, he's so cute! Hey there, little guy. Do you know who I am? I'm your big brother.'

Rick and Evy exchanged a smile and gave each other a loving squeeze.

'What's his name?' Alex asked.

'Oh, Rick!' said Evy. 'I can't believe you didn't tell him that on the way over from Egypt!'

'I thought we should do it together, honey,' said Rick.

'Oh, how sweet of you,' Evy said with a smile. 'Now that we're all here, you go ahead and tell him.'

'I think you should be the one to tell him, Evy,' said Rick.

'Please, will _one_ of you tell him?' said Alex.

'Your brother's name is Michael,' said Evy.

'Ooh, great name,' said Alex. 'Positively heroic! But, er... isn't that a bit of a mouthful, Michael O'Connell?'

'Good old Mike O'Connell,' said Rick.

'And before that, dear little Mikey O'Connell,' said Evy.

'Okay, yeah,' Alex said with a smile, 'those work. Hi there, Mikey. My name's Alex. Someday I'm gonna train you to be a great Medjai warrior... if you want me to, that is. But I'm always gonna be there for you, no matter what. And I'm the Supreme Medjai, so you pretty much completely lucked out so far as having an older brother is concerned.'

Michael made a few gurgling noises, then he reached out to investigate the forefinger that Alex was dangling over him.

'I think he likes me,' said Alex, looking up at his parents with an enormous smile on his face.

'Of course he likes you, sport,' said Rick. 'Like you said, you're his big brother and he knows it.'

'Is it okay if I hold him for a while longer?' said Alex.

'Of course,' said Evy. 'Let's all take a seat and catch up a bit, shall we?'

Alex selected an armchair and carefully backed himself into it, while Rick and Evy sat together on the couch. Michael snuggled contentedly against Alex's chest. Alex fixed his brother with a look of devotion.

'I hope he doesn't think he's gonna get any milk out of there,' said Alex.

'He doesn't,' Evy said with a smile. 'He's just enjoying being close to you, Alex.'

'Yeah, I've been getting quite a lot of that lately,' said Alex, smiling to himself.

'How's that, son?' asked Rick.

'Hmm? Oh, nothing!' Alex said quickly. 'So, tell me about your dig in St Albans.'

'Before we do that, I think you should tell your mom all about the little gift you have for her in your suitcase,' said Rick. 'And how you managed to get it there, of course.'

'A little gift for me?' said Evy. 'Oh, Alex, you shouldn't have!'

'Well, it was kind of an accident, to be honest with you, Mom,' said Alex. 'But I'm glad I've been able to bring it back to you after all this time.'

' _Do_ tell me what you're talking about, Alex.'

'The Book of the Dead.'

'Good Lord,' Evy breathed. 'Where did you find it?'

'Hamanaptra,' said Alex. 'You know, where people usually find it.'

'You just have to hear this, Evy!' said Rick. 'You won't believe what Alex has been doing over the past few days.'

'Yeah,' said Alex, 'I can hardly believe a lot of it myself. But at least you can take the Book of the Dead back to the British Museum now, which has to be a good thing, right?'

'Yes,' said Evy, 'I suppose that's the best place for it. Although I haven't actually set foot in the museum since I heard those two tour guides gossiping about me behind my back.'

'They weren't gossiping, Evy,' said Rick.

'They were!' said Evy. 'One of them said, "Do you think Evelyn's pregnant?" and then the other one said, "Of _course_ she is! Who's Evelyn?". I hate being talked about like that, particularly by people who don't know who I am!'

'Never mind, honey,' Rick said soothingly. 'The story of Alex's adventure at Hamanaptra will take your mind off all that unpleasantness. Go ahead, son.'

'Okay,' said Alex. 'Just listen to this, Mom – you'll love it, I promise!'

* * *

'Oh dear,' Evy sighed, 'I wonder if Imhotep will _really_ stay dead for good this time!'

'He will if the Sceptre of Djed does its job properly,' said Alex.

'Whatever happens with Imhotep, at least that bottom-feeder Weasler is finally where he belongs,' said Rick. 'Behind bars!'

'Oh yes,' said Evy, 'I'm very glad about that. He was always a mediocre scholar at best, but as a henchman to the undead he was rather too persistent for my liking.'

The sound of the front door being opened suddenly came into the room.

'Coo-ee!' a familiar voice called from the hallway. 'Anyone home?'

'In here, Jonathan!' Rick called back. 'You might as well come and join us, now that you've barged in to our house without warning!'

'Thanks,' said Jonathan, as he sauntered into the drawing room. 'Oh, how cute – the O'Connell brothers have met at last!'

'We sure have, Uncle Jonathan,' Alex grinned. 'And we're getting along like a house on fire.'

'It's pretty easy to get along with someone who's asleep,' Jonathan remarked, nodding at the inert figure in Alex's arms.

'We were getting along just fine when he was awake too,' Alex laughed.

'To what do we owe the honour of your company, Jonathan?' said Evy.

'I've come to see Alex, of course,' said Jonathan. 'And to tell you all that my loan has been approved by the bank, and I move in to my new business premises in two weeks!'

'Wonderful,' said Rick. 'That means you'll be asking us to bail you out of financial ruin in two and a _half_ weeks!'

'Oh, ye of little faith,' said Jonathan.

'What kind of business are you gonna be doing in these new premises, Uncle Jonathan?' said Alex.

'I'm opening a nightclub!' Jonathan declared. 'Just wait 'til you hear what it's going to be called. You'll love this, Alex. I'm calling it "Imhotep's"!'

'Ugh,' Alex winced. 'Just when I was hoping never to hear that name again.'

'You were?' said Jonathan.

'Yeah, I was,' said Alex. 'And I'd love to tell you all about why that is, Uncle Jonathan, but first I think I should give the baby back to Mom.'

'Why do you think that?' said Jonathan.

'Because he's getting hungry,' said Alex. 'He'll wake up pretty soon and he'll want a feed.'

'How do you know that, son?' said Rick.

'Huh? Oh, I'm reading his mind,' said Alex. 'I'm not particularly _trying_ to, actually, but I don't think I should be too worried about that. It could just be that I can't turn the power on and off for babies because they have raw feelings rather than actual thoughts, like I get with Tut and the Medjai horses. Or it could be that I've accidentally let all my internal walls down because I've gone completely gaga over meeting my little brother. Or perhaps _because_ we're brothers, our brains are linked so strongly that my mental powers activated on their own when I touched him. Anyway, I'm sure it's nothing to worry about.'

Alex found that Rick, Evy and Jonathan were all staring at him with mouths agape. He frowned.

'What?' said Alex. 'I wrote and told you about my mind-reading powers, remember?'

'Yes... yes, we remember, son,' said Rick. 'But I guess it was always going to be a shock to see you actually using them.'

'It's not that we didn't believe you, of course,' said Evy. 'It's just that some things need to be witnessed first-hand before they can be fully processed by the brain.'

'As you've been away for almost a year, I'm sure you've done a whole lot of stuff that's likely to make us stare at you with our gaping mouths open like fish if we hear about it,' said Jonathan.

'Yeah,' said Alex, 'that's definitely true!'

'Okay, well, I'll take Mikey back and he can let me know when he's ready to be fed,' said Evy, getting to her feet and approaching her two sons.

'And I'll tell Uncle Jonathan all about Hamanaptra,' said Alex, as he carefully handed over the baby.

'Hamanaptra?' said Jonathan. 'What on earth did you want to go back there for, mate?'

Alex grinned and said, 'Take a wild guess, Uncle Jonathan!'

* * *

 _Four weeks later..._

Jonathan and Alex came up from the cellar of Jonathan's nightclub, each carrying a crate of alcoholic drinks. They deposited the crates on the bar, then Alex started to hand the bottles to Jonathan, who slid or clipped them into various places.

'So, Alex,' said Jonathan, 'what do you think of the place?'

'I think it's absolutely fantastic, Uncle Jonathan,' Alex grinned at him. 'I just know you're gonna make a big success of this whole venture.'

'Yes, it's been going pretty well so far,' said Jonathan. 'I don't mind admitting to being cautiously optimistic... although I still have a few overhead costs I need to repay.'

'That's not gonna be a problem though, right?'

'No problem at all, mate. After the Friday night rush, I should be firmly back in the black.'

Alex smiled at his uncle. The main door of the building was then assaulted by a series of frenzied knocks. The colour drained from Jonathan's face.

'We know you're in there, Carnahan!' an aggressive voice came through the door. 'The boss wants fifty quid from you right now, otherwise we rearrange your face!'

Jonathan grabbed Alex by the shoulders and pulled him to the floor behind the bar.

'Just keep very quiet!' said Jonathan. 'They'll give up and go away in a minute.'

'That sounds like a very short-term solution to the problem, Uncle Jonathan,' said Alex.

'Short-term is better than no-term,' said Jonathan. 'The trouble with many of my business associates is that they just don't understand the value of patience. I'll be able to pay back everything I owe after Friday night, but until then...'

'You just have to hope they don't find a chance to beat the crap out of you,' said Alex.

'Yes, precisely,' said Jonathan.

The knocking and shouting continued for some time. When he suspected that his visitors had given up, Jonathan peered over the top of the bar.

'They're leaving... I think they're leaving,' he said. 'Yes, they've gone.'

'I sure hope you know what you're doing, Uncle Jonathan,' said Alex, rising to his feet and dusting himself off.

'Of course I do,' said Jonathan. 'It's just that I always do things in my own inimitable style that no one else seems to be able to fully get to grips with.'

'Yeah,' Alex said with a smile, 'that's what worries me.'

'I think we should head home now,' said Jonathan. 'They may be back soon, and they might bring... well, it'd be best if I make myself scarce, all things considered. I need to collect that paperwork from my office. Could you grab the keys and lock up behind us, Alex?'

'Sure,' said Alex, 'no problem, Uncle Jonathan.'

They made a quick trip to the office, where Jonathan retrieved his paperwork and Alex took charge of the keys. They emerged from the front door of the club into a very foggy street.

'That fog's gotten about ten times thicker since we arrived,' Alex remarked.

'Looks like it's going to be a bad one,' said Jonathan. 'I hope it lifts by Friday night, otherwise no one'll feel like going out to a nightclub.'

As Jonathan set forth into the grey mist, Alex turned to lock the door. When he turned back, he found that he could no longer see his companion.

'Uncle Jonathan!' he called. 'Where did you go? Wait for me!'

A loud thud and a strangled cry of pain came to Alex's ears. He ran around the side of the building to find Jonathan being physically restrained by one unpleasant-looking thug and punched in the stomach by a second.

'Where's the money, Carnahan?' the thug in front of Jonathan demanded.

'I already told you, I'll have it on Friday!' said Jonathan. 'Rearranging my face isn't going to make it come any quicker... in fact it'll impede my hosting duties, and I might not make any money at all!'

'Don't mess us about, Carnahan,' said the thug. 'You're gonna give us _something_ today, otherwise...'

'You don't know the danger you're putting yourselves in, threatening me like this!' said Jonathan. 'My nephew's around here somewhere and he has super-powers, so...'

The two thugs burst into raucous laughter. Alex judged the moment to be right for him to intervene. He ran up behind the thug who was holding Jonathan and kicked his legs out from under him, then he punched the thug who had been doing all the talking in the face. The talkative thug recovered quickly and rushed at Alex; Alex socked him in the abdomen and sent him crashing into a wall.

Jonathan had managed to land a good punch on the second thug while he had been dragging himself back to his feet. With Alex's attention now focused on him too, the second thug ran back down the alley at top speed. Alex turned back to face the first thug, but he too was in full retreat.

'You've got 'til Friday, Carnahan!' the first thug's voice wafted through the fog. 'No one'll be able to save you after that; not even your super-powered nephew!'

'Phew,' said Jonathan, wiping the sweat from his forehead. 'Thanks, Alex.'

'Uncle Jonathan, are you sure everything's gonna be okay?' said Alex.

'Oh, yes,' Jonathan said airily. 'You heard him, didn't you? They won't be back 'til Friday, and things will be hunky-dory by then!'

Jonathan bent to retrieve his paperwork from the ground. When he straightened up again, his expression was far less confident than it had been before.

'Of course, that's assuming I can actually make enough money on Friday night,' he said uncertainly. 'I might not manage it, particularly if this fog persists. I don't know why I thought I could do this, really. What was I thinking? I'm no businessman! Maybe I should throw myself on the mercy of the bank and see if they'll buy the premises back for a reasonable sum. Jeez, this fog is cold!'

'Come on, Uncle Jonathan, that's not the attitude!' said Alex, clapping Jonathan on the back. 'At least wait 'til Friday and see how it goes, huh?'

'But what if those guys come back on Friday and I can't pay them and they rearrange my face? Or they might decide to do that even if I _can_ pay them!'

'Well, I'll come with you and wait in the office – I can't be in the main part of the club during business hours, obviously – and then if those guys try to do anything to you, I'll totally kick their butts; how about that, huh?'

Jonathan laughed and put an arm around his nephew's shoulders. Alex grinned back at him.

'Okay, Alex,' said Jonathan, 'you can be my bodyguard. Now come on, let's go home – this fog is chilling me right through to my bones.'

'Yeah,' said Alex, casting an uncertain glance at the overcast sky, 'it sure is a chilly one.'

* * *

Alex and Evy were standing at the kitchen sink. Evy was removing various items of crockery and cutlery from the water and passing them to Alex, who was drying them with a cloth.

'That fog's just not letting up, is it?' said Alex, peering out of the window. 'It's so thick, I can barely see across the street.'

'It's perpetuating a very inaccurate stereotype,' said Evy. 'Most Americans seem to think that London looks like this pretty much all of the time, but it was the Victorians – with their somewhat excessive coal-burning tendencies – who used to make proper pea-soupers on a regular basis.'

'Well, it looks like we've made one now,' said Alex.

'Yes, it certainly does seem that way,' said Evy. 'I'm so glad I'm on maternity leave and I don't have to leave the house.'

'Come on, Mom,' Alex grinned, 'I bet you're just itching to go back to work at the museum, aren't you? You'll probably take Mikey with you in one of those body-harness things.'

'No, I don't think so,' Evy sighed. 'To tell you the truth, Alex, I really don't have a lot of enthusiasm for that place anymore. I feel like I've catalogued enough artefacts to last me several lifetimes... and to be perfectly honest, when you've seen one ancient piece of tat, you've seen them all.'

'Are you okay, Mom?' said Alex. 'That really didn't sound like you talking just now.'

'I've had an epiphany,' said Evy. 'My entire life so far has been a complete waste of time... oh, except for my two wonderful sons, of course! But my _professional_ life... ugh, boring!'

'Well if you feel that way, you should probably get another job,' said Alex.

'I couldn't _possibly_ get another job!' said Evy. 'What else would anyone ever hire me to do? You tell me _that_ , Alex!'

'You could do anything you put your mind to, Mom,' said Alex. 'Hey, maybe you could write a series of books about our adventures all around the world! I bet they'd sell really well, plus it'd be a great job for someone with a baby 'cause you could work from home.'

'I'm not a writer, Alex,' Evy sighed. 'I'd probably think I had an excellent idea for a story and then it would turn out to be utter bilge!'

'I don't get where you're coming from, Mom,' said Alex. 'You've already given a few speeches and lectures about your adventures, and you said you really enjoyed doing it and people really enjoyed listening to you. I bet those people would love to buy your books. Just think how successful you could be as an author! I don't know why none of us has thought of this before. I think it's a brilliant idea, even by my own admission.'

'It's... it's pointless, Alex,' said Evy. 'Can you finish off the last of this washing-up on your own? I need to get the chicken in the oven and peel the carrots and make... chicken.'

'Er... sure, Mom,' said Alex, as he watched his mother plodding across the kitchen in a very unenthusiastic manner. 'Look, are you sure you're okay?'

'I'm fine, Alex,' Evy sighed. 'There's nothing wrong with me; everything's just fine.'

Alex continued to look at Evy with concern on his face. He was distracted by the sound of the front door opening, which was quickly followed by the appearance of Rick and Jonathan in the kitchen.

'It's just another twenty quid, I swear!' Jonathan was pleading. 'I'll make it all back on Friday night, then I can pay what I owe you... plus a few other people.'

'What kind of people?' Rick asked suspiciously.

'Um... investors,' said Jonathan.

'You mean loan sharks,' said Rick.

'Well, I wouldn't call them that,' said Jonathan. 'Although if you don't give me the twenty quid, I may no longer have any kneecaps by the end of the week.'

'Okay, fine, you can have another twenty pounds!' said Rick. 'But that's the last penny I'm gonna give you, Jonathan, and I want it all back by the end of next week!'

'Thanks, Rick,' said Jonathan.

'You're a free-loading bum,' said Rick. 'You know that, don't you?'

'Yes, I know,' Jonathan sighed. 'I don't know why I ever thought I could be a successful nightclub owner... or a successful _anything_! Jonathan Carnahan, the world's most diverse screw-up! That's me.'

'You hear that?' said Rick. 'It's the sound of no one disagreeing with you.'

' _I_ disagree with you, Uncle Jonathan,' said Alex.

'Thanks, mate,' said Jonathan, fixing Alex with a weak smile. 'But even the Supreme Medjai can't be right about everything. I've just come to a decision: I'm going to hand over the club to the bank and take what they'll give me for it. Hopefully it'll be enough to clear my debts, but taking my track record into account... well, I'll probably lose my kneecaps anyway.'

'But Uncle Jonathan,' said Alex, 'last week you were saying how happy you were to be running your own business at last, and how you'd been waiting for this opportunity your whole life!'

'It was a pipe-dream, Alex,' Jonathan sighed. 'Nothing more.'

'You're being too hard on yourself, Jonathan,' Rick said with a sigh. 'What right do I have to judge you? I've never been able to hold down a real job. At least you're trying, right? I mean, what have _I_ ever done? I've been a solider, a mercenary, an archaeologist, a mummy-hunter... I've never been a reliable provider for my family! I'm even worse than my own dad! He... he was right to abandon me all those years ago. He could obviously tell what a failure I was going to become!'

'What the hell is wrong with everyone today?' Alex exclaimed shrilly, slamming his fist onto the draining board and making the dishes rattle. 'You're all acting like... like... well, I don't even know what you're acting like, but I definitely don't like how you're acting!'

'Sorry, mate,' said Jonathan. 'Perhaps it's the fog – we're all suffering from sunlight deprivation.'

'Yeah,' said Alex, 'I was starting to think the same thing, Uncle Jonathan... or something like it, anyway.'

'Alex, you're the one worthwhile thing I've ever produced in my life,' said Rick. 'But you just don't need me anymore, so I really am totally useless now!'

'Of course I need you, Dad!' said Alex.

'You don't!' said Rick. 'You have an army of Medjai at your command, Alex! You have Ardeth and the Minotaur and Fadil and Yanit...'

'That doesn't mean I don't need you as well! Even if our relationship is a little different now, it's still really important to me, Dad. The same goes for you, Uncle Jonathan... and for you, Mom!'

'Don't be silly, Alex,' said Evy, as she half-heartedly shoved the chicken into the oven. 'Your father's right and you know it.'

'That's nonsense!' said Alex. 'And even if it wasn't, you're forgetting about Mikey! How could any of you think that _he_ doesn't need you?'

'Poor little Mikey,' Rick sighed. 'What were we thinking, bringing a poor, innocent child into such a world as this? Maybe it would've been better if we...'

Rick left the sentence unfinished, but no one made any attempt to contradict him. Looking extremely worried now, Alex opened his mouth to say something else. He was forestalled by the sound of crying coming from the drawing room.

'You see?' said Alex. 'He needs you right now!'

'Just let him cry,' said Evy. 'He'll be doing plenty of that in his life, so why shouldn't he get a head-start now?'

'We couldn't do anything for him anyway,' said Rick. 'We've always been terrible parents – he'd be better off without us.'

Alex gaped at his parents for several seconds, then he adopted a determined expression and ran to see to his brother.


	2. Chapter 2

Alex entered the drawing room to find one of the windows open and five finger-like tendrils of thick fog extending through it and hovering over Michael's carry-cot. Alex frowned and extended his right hand towards the window, which immediately slammed shut. Alex went to the cot and lifted his brother into his arms.

'Hey there, Mikey,' he said soothingly. 'What's all this noise about, huh? You're getting as bad as the rest of them... but at least you have the excuse of only being five weeks old! I don't know what's wrong with everyone today. There's definitely something in the air, and I'm not just talking about the fog... or maybe I am, huh? Are you feeling it too, Mikey?'

Michael had stopped crying almost as soon as Alex had picked him up. Alex gently hugged his brother to his chest for a few moments, then he put the baby back in the carry-cot and took it over to the couch. Alex sat down and placed the carry-cot beside him, then he let out a long sigh.

'I don't know, Mikey,' said Alex, 'maybe I'm over-thinking the whole situation. I mean, just because this fog has been hanging around for days and now everyone's depressed, that doesn't necessarily mean it's some kind of evil fog, does it? Maybe I'm just seeing the supernatural in the naturally unusual. But can you really blame me for that, after everything I've been through? It's not always easy being the Supreme Medjai, you know. Maybe... maybe I'm not so good of a Supreme Medjai. I've made a lot of mistakes, Mikey... mistakes that might make me a highly unsuitable role model for you, come to think of it. Maybe you'd be better off without me. Maybe I should just go back to Egypt and get myself out of everyone's hair. Maybe...'

Alex's eyes slid shut and his head lolled back on the couch cushion. His mind was immediately assaulted by images of his past failures and mistakes. He felt the Manacle of Osiris attaching itself to his wrist with an unbreakable grip. He saw himself taking one risk too many with a herd of rhinos. He looked into the Well Spring of Darkness and remembered its tantalising power. He relived the moment when his own self-doubt had caused the ship that he and his family were travelling on to burst into flames.

He saw Yanit dangling from the mandibles of the Scarab. He looked into the hate-filled eyes of Elder Garth. He watched his grandfather disappear into the desert. He saw himself hurling the small figure of Safin to the floor with tremendous force. He felt the claw-like fingers of Imhotep burrowing their way into the flesh of his back. He screamed.

Alex's eyes snapped open. He saw immediately that the drawing room was now thick with the cloying grey fog. He glanced over to the window. It was open again.

'I... I knew it,' Alex muttered. 'It's... it's evil fog!'

He tried to stand up, but found that he did not have the strength. He heard Michael gurgle in the carry-cot beside him. Alex smiled down at his brother, and put his left hand into the cot. Michael grasped Alex's forefinger in his tiny hands. Alex smiled, and his eyes slid shut again.

Alex saw himself happy and triumphant. He was passing his final test to become a fully qualified Medjai warrior. He was activating his telekinetic powers for the first time to snatch the Medallion of the Medjai from Imhotep's grasp. He was raising Imhotep above his head and hurling him into the Underworld.

He was trapping the Scarab in its amulet form. He was sitting up in his bed and hugging Yanit. He was shaking hands with Zain and Hamza. He was indulging in a topless hug with Fadil. He was running across the desert sand to meet his father. He was being gathered into the welcoming arms of his mother. He was holding his baby brother for the first time.

Alex's eyes opened again. Michael was still grasping his left index finger. On his right wrist, the Manacle of Osiris had started to glow. The fog in the room had almost completely dissipated. Alex tried again to stand up, but found that he still did not have the energy. He closed his eyes again.

Alex saw himself kissing Yanit for the first time. He went on to relive many of their most tender moments. He found himself lying in his bed. He felt Yanit sliding between the sheets to join him. An enormous smile spread over Alex's face. He then felt a sudden lurching sensation, and fell to his hands and knees on the floor.

* * *

Alex blinked in the semi-darkness. His eyes took a few moments to adjust, then he looked around in bewilderment. He could tell with certainty that he was no longer in the drawing room. He was surrounded by walls of stone. There was a wooden chair and table to one side of him, and a large cupboard to the other. In front of him was a bed, on which a figure was curled up in a tight ball, hugging its knees and obviously asleep.

'I... I'm back at the Medjai Academy,' Alex breathed. 'But... but how?'

Alex pulled himself to his feet and walked towards the bed. It did not take him long to recognise the sleeping figure.

'Yanit...' he whispered.

Yanit continued to sleep. Alex reached out to touch her cheek, but he somehow missed it in the darkness.

'Yanit!' he said, more loudly this time. 'I don't understand what's going on here. Is that really you?'

'Alex...' Yanit breathed, still with her eyes closed.

'Yes,' said Alex, 'I'm here, Yanit... at least, I think I am.'

Yanit's eyes opened. She stared up at Alex. He smiled at her. She smiled back. Alex reached out to touch her, but again found that he could not.

'I don't get this, Yanit,' said Alex. 'Are you really here? Am _I_ really here? I want to touch you but I can't!'

'I want you to touch me too, Alex,' said Yanit. 'This must be a dream, I think – one where the object of your desire is forever tantalisingly out of your reach.'

'I guess that makes sense,' said Alex. 'I mean, you're definitely the object of my desire.'

'And you're the object of mine,' said Yanit. 'Oh Alex, you have no idea how much I want you right now... how much I _need_ you! I suppose that's why I'm imagining that you're here with me; you're so far away from me, I can only have what I want in the deepest realms of sleep.'

'I think I'm trying to overcome the effects of some kind of evil fog, and you're my beacon of light,' said Alex. 'That must be why I'm getting such a strong image of you.'

'It's interesting to hear you say that, Alex. Do I look like an image to you? You certainly look like an image to me... translucent, I mean.'

'Um...' said Alex. 'No, you look completely solid.'

'I wish I could say the same thing about you,' said Yanit. 'Oh my God, you're not dead, are you? You're not appearing to me as a ghost?'

'I... I really don't think I'm dead,' said Alex. 'I mean, I don't _feel_ dead... or not so far as I know, anyway.'

'You don't look dead either,' Yanit agreed. 'I can tell from your eyes, I think. That settles it, then – you must be a figment of my imagination, because I love you and I miss you and I want you so much.'

'And _you_ must be a figment of _my_ imagination, because I love you and I miss you and I want you so much,' said Alex.

'Well, it's good to've gotten that sorted out,' Yanit said, with a wry smile.

'I... I wish you would've come with me to London, Yanit.'

'So do I, now. But no; that's selfish of me. You need to spend time with your family, Alex.'

'That's not really a very attractive prospect at the moment,' said Alex, 'with the way they're all behaving... well, except for Mikey.'

'Is that your little brother?' Yanit asked.

'Yeah,' Alex grinned. 'He's beautiful, Yanit.'

Yanit smiled back at him for a moment, then her face clouded over and tears began to run down her cheeks. Alex looked horrified and tried again to reach out to her, but he met with no more success than the previous two times.

'Yanit, what's wrong?' Alex asked shrilly.

'Oh... nothing, really,' said Yanit. 'I'm being silly. I just... I wish so much that you were really here with me, and that I could touch you and hold you and... and... and just be with you!'

'Why?' said Alex. 'I mean, why more than usual? Because it _is_ more than usual, Yanit – even I can see that!'

'I'm just missing you, that's all,' said Yanit. 'And I'm wishing to God that I'd come with you so that... well, so that we could've been together.'

'We _will_ be together, Yanit, really soon! And then we'll never, ever leave each other's side again, I promise you!'

'You shouldn't make promises you can't keep, Alex.'

'But I _can_ keep that promise!' said Alex. 'I _will_ keep that promise! Nothing means more to me than you, Yanit. I'd turn away from the Medjai life and fly off with you in Rupert to some island paradise where we could live together in ecstasy for the rest of our lives, if that's what you wanted!'

'Oh, Alex,' Yanit sighed, 'what a beautiful and exciting mental picture you paint. But it's only a dream, you know. The reality is that I'd end up disappointing you and letting you down.'

'No!' said Alex. 'Yanit, you could never disappoint me, _or_ let me down!'

'You wouldn't say that if you knew.'

'Knew what?'

'What I've done!'

'What you've done?'

Yanit nodded, then she started crying again. Alex desperately tried to reach out to her, but yet again his hands closed on thin air.

'I don't care!' Alex declared. 'Do you hear me, Yanit? I don't care! Whatever you've done, I love you and I need you and I wish with all my heart that you were here with me right now!'

'But I _am_ here, Alex. You're the one who's _not_ here. I mean, you can't be, can you? I wish it _was_ really you... and that you really _did_ say all those wonderful things to me.'

'But it _is_ me, and I _did_ say them! I don't know why and I don't know how, but I'm here with you, Yanit. At least, a part of me is... the most important part of me!'

'I wish I could believe you.'

'I'll prove it to you!'

'How?'

'I'll... I'll kiss you! That'll show you I'm really here, won't it?'

'Oh, Alex,' said Yanit, 'there's nothing I'd love more in the world than for you to kiss me right now... but I just don't believe it's possible.'

'Of course it's possible!' said Alex. 'If we truly love each other, anything's possible! And I _do_ love you, Yanit. I don't care how Ardeth or anyone else wants to rationalise it, and I don't care how young I am, and I don't care that one or both of us might not really be here – I love you with all my heart and that's all there is to it!'

'I love _you_ with all _my_ heart, Alex,' said Yanit. 'But do you really think that's enough?'

'It's enough for anything – enough for _everything_!' said Alex. 'Close your eyes, Yanit, and I promise I'll kiss you – there's no force on Earth or Heaven that can stop me!'

Yanit smiled at Alex and closed her eyes. Alex kept his gaze trained on her face for several seconds, forming a complete picture of it in his mind. He closed his eyes; still Yanit's features were etched into his brain.

Alex leaned forward and pressed his lips to Yanit's. She made a vocalisation of pleasure; her own lips started to move under his. Then, with another sickening lurch, Alex found himself back on his hands and knees on the floor of his parents' drawing room.

* * *

Alex jumped to his feet. He quickly noticed that there was no longer any sign of the evil fog in the room, and that the Manacle of Osiris was glowing very brightly. He looked into the carry-cot and saw that Michael was sleeping contentedly. He smiled.

Alex ran over to the open window and peered out into the street. The fog was still lingering outside, but it was noticeably less soupy than before. Alex stuck his right arm through the window. He watched the tendrils of fog apparently shying away from the intense glow of the Manacle. He nodded.

Alex ran into the kitchen to find Rick, Evy and Jonathan still standing around in a disconsolate manner.

'Guys, we have to stop the fog!' Alex exclaimed.

'We can't stop the fog, Alex,' said Evy. 'We just have to wait for it to lift. It can't be too much longer now.'

'That's exactly where you're wrong, Mom!' said Alex. 'It'll never lift so long as it still has people's negative emotions to feed on – that's what it's doing, you take my word for it!'

'Don't be silly, mate,' said Jonathan. 'It's just regular fog.'

'It's _not_ regular fog – it's _evil_ fog!' Alex insisted. 'I don't just know that for a fact – I can _feel_ it too, because I'm the Supreme Medjai!'

'That's your excuse for everything nowadays, sport,' said Rick. 'Kinda like "because of the Manacle" used to be your excuse for everything.'

'Well, it's not like that wasn't a _true_ excuse!' said Alex. 'The Manacle _did_ make me remember those erased timelines, and it helped me to break the spell of the Aglaophones, and it... well, it did a ton of other stuff for me as well. And I'm telling you now, just like I told you all those other times, I know for sure that the fog is _not_ just ordinary fog! Maybe it's an evil entity that feeds on human emotions, or maybe it's some kind of genetically engineered weapon that's escaped from some freaky lab somewhere, or maybe it was actually created by a huge build-up of humankind's own negative emotions, which wouldn't surprise me with the way the world is right now... but none of that really matters! The fact is that the fog is here, it's evil, and we need to get rid of it!'

Rick, Evy and Jonathan exchanged glances.

'Even if you're right about the fog, Alex,' said Evy, 'that's not to say we have the power to do anything about it.'

'But we _do_ have the power, Mom!' said Alex. 'All of us have the power! The fog can be defeated with strong positive emotions! I was just in the drawing room and I made all the fog in there disappear by thinking about you guys and Mikey and my Medjai friends and... well, some other stuff that I'd rather not talk about right now. But it made the Manacle of Osiris glow and it, like, killed the fog, or at least scared it off or something. So all we have to do is think about how much we love each other and direct our positive feelings through the Manacle – which is coming into its own in this plan as the world's most powerful conduit – and I'm sure we can kill all the rest of the fog!'

'But I don't _have_ any positive feelings right now,' said Jonathan. 'My business is a flop and I'm going to be eviscerated by loan sharks.'

'I don't have any positive feelings either,' said Rick. 'I'm a failure as a father and as a person.'

'And I'm just a redundant librarian who couldn't write an adventure novel to save her life,' said Evy. 'Plus the chicken I'm making is undoubtedly going to taste like arse.'

'Look, _I_ had to fight to overcome my negative emotions too,' said Alex. 'It wasn't easy... but I did it, and so can you! If you're not getting enough warm fuzzies from me, just think about Mikey! He's a blessing and a miracle and the best thing that could possibly have happened to this family as a follow-up to our mummy-chasing adventures!'

'We... we don't deserve him,' said Rick.

'That's right,' said Evy. 'Mikey would be better off without us.'

'Would he?' said Alex, adopting a determined look. 'Okay, fine; we'll see about that.'

Alex ran from the room. He returned a few seconds later with the carry-cot in his arms.

'If you guys think he'd be better off without you, I'd better take him back to Egypt with me, hadn't I?' said Alex. 'We'll raise him at the Medjai Academy, okay?'

'Raise him at the Medjai Academy?' Evy said distantly.

'That's right!' said Alex. 'He'll get a huge head-start as a Medjai warrior – quite an opportunity, huh? Don't worry; we'll take very good care of him.'

'Maybe... maybe that would be for the best,' said Rick.

'Yes,' said Evy, 'I think perhaps it would.'

'You won't get to see him very often!' said Alex. 'I don't want you guys turning up whenever you feel like it and interfering with his training schedule!'

'Whatever you say, sport,' said Rick. 'He's your responsibility now, and we'll respect your wishes.'

'Still, it... it would be a shame, I suppose,' said Evy.

'What would be a shame, Mom?' said Alex.

'If Mikey grew up without a mother to take care of him,' said Evy. 'Every little boy needs a mother, right?'

'Yes,' said Jonathan. 'A boy's best friend is his mother.'

'Yanit will be his mother!' said Alex. 'She and I will raise him like he's our own son... so he won't need you anymore, Mom!'

'Oh, well... that's all right, then,' said Evy. 'Go ahead and take him, Alex.'

Alex frowned. He took a few backwards steps towards the door.

'I'm gonna take him in the Zephyr, right now!' said Alex. 'We'll be in Egypt by midnight, and I'm not gonna bring him back to England for... ooh, ages.'

'Whatever you think is best, son,' said Rick.

'Yes,' said Evy. 'We bow to your superior judgement, Alex.'

'Okay,' said Alex, 'if that's what you really want. I'm going into the hallway now... I'm opening the front door!'

The sound of the front door being opened came into the kitchen. Rick, Evy and Jonathan did not react in any way.

'I'm going out of the front door now!' Alex's voice wafted into the room. 'I'm taking Mikey with me, to Egypt! I'm about to close the front door! I'm really gonna do it! Okay, here I go!'

The front door slammed shut. Rick, Evy and Jonathan continued to stare at each other in complete silence. Fog poured into the kitchen through the open window. No one seemed to notice. The room was soon filled with a thick cloud. The three inert figures were all but lost to view.


End file.
